


When Lightning Strikes

by Bear2011



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Fix-It, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-02-18 19:34:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13107060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bear2011/pseuds/Bear2011
Summary: What happens when changing the past doesn't work in your favor? Someone is about to find out.





	1. Pilot Pt. 1

To understand what I'm about to tell you, you need to do something first. You need to believe in the impossible. Can you do that? Good. My name is Barry Allen. I am the fastest man alive. Well, one of them anyway. Now to start my story I’m going to take you back to the day my life changed forever. I was running late as usual and had just made it off the elevator at the CCPD precinct. I guess that I should mention that I’m a CSI there. Anyway I was trying my best not to be seen and make it up the stairs to my lab before Captain Singh caught me when I ran into someone and fell to the ground.

 “Oh my god I am so sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going,” Barry apologized. He was so embarrassed he didn’t even look at the guy.

“It’s all right accidents happen.” He offered a hand and helped me up. “Can I help you find someone?”

“Oh no. I’m Barry Allen, I work in the CSI lab upstairs,” he introduced himself as he dusted off his clothes.

“Eddie,” Joe’s voice called out, “I see you’ve meet Barry. Barry this is our new Detective Eddie Thawne. He’s a transfer from Keystone.” Barry finally looked up and his heart stopped. He had never seen someone so beautiful.

“Um hi,” Barry said not sure what else to say his brain couldn’t seem to form sentences. He stuck his hand out to shake his hand. Eddie grabbed his and shook it and Barry hoped he wasn’t sweating.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Eddie said the most amazing smile on his face.

“Alright, why don’t we let Barry get a move on before he gets caught? He’s running a little late. Again.” They all shared a small laugh before Barry continued on his way to his lab.

Probably not the beginning you were expecting but I promise that it’s important to the story I’m going to be telling. You see the day I meet Eddie Thawne was the day I started moving forward in my life. That was the day I stopped cling so hard to the past. That was the day life started to get better. The day I had more to live for than trying to free my dad.

And now on to the part you were probably expecting. The part of my story that set me on the path to becoming a superhero. Well it starts the night that my mother was murdered. It happened one night when I was little. I woke up to screaming and I ran down stairs. It was like there was a lightning store in my house. Lightning was flying around the room circling my mom. In the lightning I could see a man. She screamed for me to stay back and as soon as my dad showed up I found myself outside a few streets away from my house. By the time I got back they were arresting my dad and my mother was dead. Nobody would believe me about the man in the lightning that I saw. That night I went to stay with my best friend Iris West and her father Joe. That became my new home and family. But let’s skip head to the day all of those pieces started to come together. It started like any other day with a crime and me running late.

 “This is the second robbery this week. The teller I.D.'d Clyde Mardon as the shooter,” Joe said to his partner.

“What? Oh, jeez, the Mardon Brothers are back?” his partner complained.

“What do we got?” Captain Singh asked as he walked over to the two detectives.

“Perps took the bank, shot out the cameras, and, as a chaser, killed the security guard over there. I've got unis kicking in doors of known Mardon Brothers associates,” Joe explained.

“CSI been over it?”

“Uh, no.”

“Where's Allen? You can't keep covering for him. If he's not here now, I'm going to have to carry on this investigation without him.”

“Sorry I'm late, Captain Singh,” Barry said as he ran up to the group.

“What was it this time, Mr. Allen? Did you forget to set your alarm clock? Before you answer, I should remind you the excuse you gave last time was car trouble. Want to know why that one was particularly memorable?”

“I do not own a car,” Barry said guiltily.

“He was running an errand for me,” joe cut in. “Barry, did you get me what I asked for?”

“Um no. I wasn’t able to find it in time and I would’ve been even later if I continued to look. Sorry,” Barry said as he began to look over the scene. “Getaway car's a Mustang Shelby GT500. Shelby's have a rear super-wide tire specific to that model. 12 inches with an asymmetrical tread. And there's something else,” Barry said plucking the pen from the Captain’s pocket with a quick “Thanks”. He then used it to pick up a piece of the dirt and smell it. “Fecal excrement. Animal, I'd guess.”

“My dad gave me that pen... Before he died.”

“Sorry.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Okay, I am ready to see this atom smasher smashing,” Iris said walking into the lab.

“There was a shooting today. Your dad needs me to process some evidence, which means I don't know if we're going to be able to make it to S.T.A.R. Labs,” Barry said clearly disappointed.

“But seeing this thing turn on is like your dream. Your sad, little nerdy dream. Besides, I canceled a date for this, Iris said while she started to eat Barry’s fries.

“Hands off my fries.”

“Unbelievable. I'm stress eating over my dissertation. We started selling cronuts at Jitters. I ate two today. If I don't graduate soon, I'm going to be more muffin top than woman.”

“You look amazing Barry said trying to comfort his friend. All she did was scoff at him.

“What is so important about this particle accelerator anyway?”

“Harrison Wells' work in quantum theory is light-years ahead of anything they're doing at Cern.”

“You're doing that thing where you're not speaking English.”

“Okay,” Barry said stepping up to the whiteboard and drawing a dot on it. “Just imagine that this dot is everything the human race has ever learned until this moment.”

“Does that include "twerking"?”

“That, is everything we could learn from the particle accelerator,” he explained as he drew a large circle around the dot. It's a whole new way of looking at physics. It will literally change the way that we think about everything.”

“You got to get yourself a girlfriend.”

“Hey, leave him alone. He's working,” Joe said walking into the lab.

“Hi, dad.” A beep was heard in the room. “Your test thingy is done.”

“I think the Mardon Brothers are hiding on a farm,” Barry said looking over the results and then handing them to Joe. “The fecal matter I found on the street, it was cow manure, which contained traces of oxytetracycline. It's an antibiotic. There are only four farms in the area that still use it in their feed. Bet you find a really sweet Shelby parked at one of them.”

“Dad, seeing as how Barry solved your poop problem, how about letting him go to S.T.A.R. Labs?”

“Fine, go.”

“Yes! Thank you, Joe.”

* * *

 

“So, Barry, how was your trip? Did you find proof of the impossible in Starling City, or did you just make my dad mad for no reason?”

“Actually, while I was away, I had a chance to think about... You know, relationships. And, well, I'm not in one. And you're not in one, either. And you're my best friend, Iris.”

“You're mine too. Why else would I be here?”

“That's not what I meant. What I...”

“I know what you're going to say, Barry.”

“I'm not sure you do.”

“Even though we pretty much grew up in the same house together, and we're kind of like brother and sister, but because we're not brother and sister, it can get really weird and awkward to talk to me about girls. But I just want you to know that it shouldn't be awkward. There is nothing that I want more than for you to meet the right girl that totally loves and adores you for the amazing guy that you are.”

“Took the words right out of my mouth.”

“Aw, aren't you glad I know you so well?” But not well enough to know that I like boys too. A certain detective to be precise Barry thought to himself.

“Thank you. My name is Harrison Wells. Tonight, the future begins. The work my team and I will do here will change our understanding of physics. We'll bring about advancements in power, advancements in medicine, and trust me, that future will be here faster than you think.” As everyone began to clap someone bumped into Iris and took off with her bag.

“Oh, hey, my laptop! It's got my dissertation.” Barry took off after the guy. The guy smacked him in the face as he rounded the corner.

“All right, kid, you don't have to do this, all right? Just give me back my friend's bag, and we'll call it even. Okay?” The guy acted like he was going to give it back when he hit Barry again.

“Barry!” Iris called out as she ran to catch up. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Freeze! Police,” Eddie ordered. “Or do you want to find out the hard way you're not faster than a bullet?” And there he was Eddie Thawne the very same detective Barry had been thinking of earlier.

“Who is that guy, and what is he so proud of,” Iris asked once they were back in the police station? “So he caught a mugger?”

“He's a transfer from Keystone. Started a few months ago. His names Eddie Thawne.”

“Oh, that's Detective Pretty Boy.” Barry schooled his face into one of confusion and hoped that his face didn’t blush as he mentally agreed. “That's what my dad calls him. Says he actually keeps score when it comes to arrests. He is pretty though.”

I'm Linda Park, and we're live outside S.T.A.R. Labs despite the inclement weather, which is only going to get worse. The torrential downpour has in no way affected the particle accelerator, which is up and running smoothly according to S.T.A.R. Labs CEO Harrison Wells. Barry turned away from his computer screen when he heard a knock at his lab door.

“Hey Bar, I heard the guy hit you. Is your nose alright? Yeah it’s just a little sore now,” Barry said as he stepped up at the skylight chain. Barry pulled on the chain and it didn’t move. “Hey can you help me with this.”

“Sure,” Eddie said walking over. He placed his hand above Barry’s on the chain and they both pulled it moved a little and Eddie’s hand slid on top of Barry’s. They both froze and looked at each other. “So, I was wondering,” Eddie started, “we been friends for a few months and I just wanted to know if you would like to…” But he never got to finish his question. Before he could finish the bolt of lightning came down the chain and they were both sent flying into the shelves.

 

* * *

 

“What are you doing,” Caitlin asked as she walked into see Cisco singing along to Pokerface.

“Barry likes this song.”

“How could you possibly know that?”

“I checked his Facebook page. I mean, they can hear everything, right?”

“Auditory functions are the last sensory faculties to degenerate.” Barry shot up gasping for air. “Oh, my God! Where am I?”

“He's up. Dr. Wells, get down to the cortex, like, right now,” Cisco called over the intercom.

“Pulse 120, pupils equally reactive to light,” Caitlin said as she checked over Barry.

“Hey, hey, whoa, whoa, relax. Everything's okay, man. You're at S.T.A.R. Labs.”

“S.T.A.R. Labs? Who are you,” Barry asked confused?

“I'm Cisco Ramon. She's Caitlin... Dr. Snow.”

“I need you to urinate in this.”

“Not right this second,” Cisco said giving her a look.

“What, what is happening? What’s going on?”

“You guys were struck by lightning, dude.”

“What,” Barry asked shocked? Then he saw himself on the monitor. “Lightning gave me abs?”

“Your muscles should be atrophied, but instead they're in a chronic and unexplained state of cellular regeneration. Come here. Have a seat. You were in a coma.”

“For how long?”

“Nine months.”

“What,” he asked but then he noticed the second bed in the room. “When is he going to wake up?”

“We don’t know,” Dr. Snow said. “We couldn’t even be sure if or when you would wake up.” Barry got up off the chair and walked over to him. Barry stared at Eddie laying there not moving on the bed. Barry reach forward and touched his hand. Barry felt a spark when their hands met and then Eddie was shooting up the same way he had except Barry’s name was what was on his lips.

“Hey it’s ok,” Barry said trying to calm him down. He had placed his hand on Eddie’s chest to keep him in the bed. Eddie reached up and grabbed his hand.

“Barry,” he said “what happened?”

“Yea, I’m here. We apparently got struck by lightning.”

“What,” Eddie asked looking Barry over? “Lightning gave you abs?”

Barry laughed “That’s what I said.” Barry saw Eddie relax back on to the bed as they laughed. Then Dr. Snow was stepping over to check on Eddie like she had with Barry. Then a voice spoke from over by the door “Welcome back, Mr. Allen and Mr. Thawne. The three of us have a lot to discuss.” Barry looked only to see Dr. Harrison Wells in a wheelchair.

“It's hard to believe I'm here,” Barry said as they walked around the lab. I have always wanted to meet you face to face.

“Yeah? Well, you certainly went to great lengths to do it. S.T.A.R. Labs has not been operational since FEMA categorized us as a class four hazardous location. 17 people died that night. Many more were injured. Myself amongst them.”

“Wow. What happened?” Eddie asked as they took in the damage.

“Nine months ago, the particle accelerator went online exactly as planned. For 45 minutes, I had achieved my life's dream. And then... Then there was an anomaly. The electron volts became unmeasurable, the ring under us popped. Energy from that detonation was thrown into the sky and that, in turn, seeded a storm cloud...”

“That created the lightning bolt that struck us.”

“That's right. I was recovering myself... When I heard about you two. The hospital was undergoing unexplainable power outages every time either of you were going into cardiac arrest, which was actually a misdiagnosis because you see, you weren't flat lining. Your heartbeat was moving too fast for the EKG to register it. Now, I'm not the most popular person in town these days, but Detective West and his daughter gave me permission to bring you here, where we were able to stabilize you,” Dr. Wells said as they made their way back into the cortex.

“Iris?”

“Iris, yes. She came to see you quite often.”

“She talks a lot.”

“Also, she's hot.”

“I need to go.”

“No, you can't.”

“No, Caitlin's right. No, now that you're both awake, we need to do more tests. You're still going through changes. There's so much that we don't know.”

“I'm fine. Really, I feel normal,” Barry said as he made his way to the exit. “Thank you for saving my life” and then he was gone. “Can I keep the sweatshirt?” He asked popping back into the room.

“Yeah, keep the sweatshirt”.

“I’ll follow him and make sure he’s ok,” Eddie said.

“Come back if anything happens.”

“Sure,” Eddie said and followed Barry out. Not to long after they left they found themselves standing outside of Jitters. Barry and Eddie stood watching Iris though the window. Barry smiled when she looked up and saw them.

“Oh my God,” she said as he walked through the door. “You're both awake. Why didn't S.T.A.R. Labs call us?

“We just woke up.”

“Should you even be on your feet?”

“Iris, I... I'm okay.”

“I watched you die, Barry. You kept dying. Your heart kept stopping.”

“It's still beating.”

“Feels really fast.”

“Oops” they heard as the waitress was bumped and her tray feel. Eddie stood watching as everything went in slow motion. He wasn’t sure what was happening but then everything went back to normal.

“Are you okay Tracy,” Iris asked? The waitress said yes and began to clean up the mess. “My dad is going to be so happy to see you. Let me get my stuff, okay? Be right back.”

* * *

 

“Oh, you scared the hell out of us, kid. Both of you,” Joe said looking at Eddie. “You both look okay. Are you really?”

“Yeah,” Eddie said “I feel great.”

“Detective West, we've got a 5.15 in progress at Gold City Bank, two dead. Storm's really picking up on the South side. I'd grab your rain gear.”

“I'm sorry, Barry. I got to run.”

“Do you need our help?”

“No, you two should take it easy. There'll be plenty for you guys to do once you settle in. Let's go, partner.”

“Hey, Allen, Thawne. Glad to see you.”

“Thanks, Chyre. Glad to be back,” Barry said noticing the scar on Chyre’s neck.

“The night of the explosion, Clyde Mardon shot and nearly killed Chyre. Mardon and his brother died trying to escape. Their plane crashed,” Iris explained when she noticed him looking.

Eddie watched a criminal begin to reach for one of the officer’s gun. Again time seemed to slow down around them except this time he saw Barry move at the same speed he was. Barry ran forward bumped into the guy and was back to his spot before everything went back to normal. Barry looked almost scared.

“You okay,” Iris asked?

“I... I'm fine. I... I just need some air. But I'll call you tonight, all right,” Barry said already walking to the back door.

“I’ll check on him,” Eddie said when Iris looked at him and he walked toward the door. He got out side just in time to see Barry zipping around and then run into dumpster. He started to walk over to him when he was suddenly there. Barry looked at him and the biggest grin spread across his face. He looked down the alleyway and then to off Eddie right on his heels. But then they both ran into the back of a mail truck.

“Awesome,” Barry said.


	2. Pilot Pt. 2

"You don't really believe they can run that fast, do you?" Caitlin asked as they waited for Barry and Eddie to exit the trailer.

"Well, I believe anything is possible, and in a few minutes, maybe you will too," Dr. Wells said.

"How does it fit?" Cisco asked after Barry and Eddie had come out.

"It's a little snug," Barry said the same time Eddie replied "I look ridiculous."

"At least you will be moving so fast no one will see you," Cisco said. "See, you thought the world was slowing down. It wasn't. You guys were moving so fast it only looked like everyone else was standing still. Dr. Wells will be monitoring your energy output, and Caitlin, your vitals."

"What do you do," Eddie asked?

"I make the toys, my man. Check it. This is a two-way headset with a camera I modified. Typically designed to combat battlefield impulse noise, or in your case, potential sonic booms, which would be awesome." The three of them laughed a little until Caitlin came over and began to check the sensors on Barry.

"What," she asked when she noticed him watching her?

"Nothing. I just noticed you don't smile too much."

"My once promising career in bioengineering is over, my boss is in a wheelchair for life, and the explosion that put you in a coma also killed my fiancé. So this blank expression kind of feels like the way to go."

"Mr. Allen, Mr. Thawne, while I am extremely eager to determine your full range of abilities, I do caution restraint," Dr. Wells warned. Barry and Eddie both nodded in agreement before getting ready.

"Race you," Barry said as he and Eddie stepped up to the line. "Loser has to buy coffee."

"Sure, why not," Eddie said. Then they were gone off down the runway.

"They just passed 200 Miles per hour," Cisco said excitedly.

"It's not possible," Caitlin said in disbelief. While they were running Barry zoned out caught in a memory. He wasn't able to pull himself out of it in time to keep from running into the barrels at the end of the runway.

"It looks like you had a distal radius fracture," Caitlin explained showing Barry the X-ray.

"Had," Eddie asked?

"It's healed" Caitlin said showing them the next slide. "In three hours."

"How is that even possible?" Barry wondered.

"We don't know... yet."

"You really need to learn how to stop," Cisco said.

"What happened out there today?" Dr. Wells asked. "You were moving pretty well, and then something caused you to lose focus."

"I started remembering something," Barry explained. "When I was 11, my mother was murdered. It was late. A scream woke me up. I came downstairs and... I saw what looked like a ball of lightning. Inside the lightning, there was a man. He killed my mom. They arrested my dad. He's still sitting in Iron Heights for her murder. Everyone, the cops, the shrinks, they all told me what I saw was impossible. But what if the man who killed my mom was like me and Eddie?"

"Mr. Allen, I can say without a doubt that there is no one else like either of you."

 

* * *

Barry and Eddie head to Jitters to meet up with Iris and so Eddie can by their coffee.

"I'll go get the coffee. You two talk," Eddie said he could see that Iris had some questions.

"I can see why you never talked to me about girls," Iris said smiling. "How long has this been going on?"

"What do you mean? Nothing is going on."

"Oh really. You know, dad told me about what you two were like before the accident. Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I was going to. I just wasn't sure how you would react. Your dad is fine with it now but I'm pretty sure that's only because we aren't actually dating. You really think Joe would want either of us to date a cop."

"I guess you're right he'd probably shoot him."

"Barry," Eddie shouted having caught up with them with their coffee. He used his new speed to run over and knocked them behind a concrete flowerbed before the police car could hit them. Barry recovered quickly and was off after Clyde. Barry managed to flip his car. Once Barry crawled from the wreck he saw Clyde standing in the middle of the road. Fog began to gather around him. It was so thick that Barry couldn't see where Clyde went and then a car crashed into Mardon's causing an explosion.

"That poor man," Iris said as they wheeled the body of the driver away. "The way that fog came in, I have never seen anything like it."

"Barry! Iris!" Joe called as he walked toward them.

"I'm all right, dad."

"What the hell were you thinking having her out here?" Barry tried to explain what happened but Joe didn't let him get a word in. "And I told you, when you see danger, you run the other way. You're not a cop."

"Because you wouldn't let me," Iris argued.

"You're damn right."

"Joe, I need to talk to you."

"It can wait."

"No, now," Barry said as he pulled Joe away from Iris. "I know who did this. It's Clyde Mardon. I know everybody thinks he died in a plane crash after the S.T.A.R. Labs explosion, but he is alive. All right, something happened to him that night. I… I think he can control the weather. The recent robberies, they all happened during freak meteorological events. And when I just confronted Mardon, the street was instantly enveloped in fog. One look at Joe's face told Barry everything he needed to know about what the detective was thinking in that moment. Of course you don't believe me. You never believe me."

"Okay. You want to do this now? Out here? Fine. Mardon is dead. There is no controlling the weather, Barry. Just like there was no lightning storm in your house that night. It was your brain helping a scared little boy accept what he saw."

"My dad did not murder my mother."

"Yes, he did! Your dad killed your mother, Barry! I am sorry, son! But I knew it, the jury knew it, and now he's paying for what he did."

"Dad, enough!" Iris said trying to get them to stop arguing.

"No, Iris. I have done my best to take care of you since that night, and I have never asked for anything in return, not even a thank you, but what I do ask now is that you for once in your life see things as they are." Barry wasn't sure what to do next. His emotions were all over the place so he just walked away. Joe took a breath as he watched Barry leaving. Then Eddie walked over.

"Here," Eddie said a clipped tone in his voice that told Joe he was angry about something.

"What's wrong with you?"

"What you said to Barry was uncalled for."

"That has nothing to do with you."

"Maybe it doesn't but Barry is my friend. I know I don't know the whole story but what I do know is that what you said was intentionally mean. You know Barry believes his dad is innocent. He told me that's part of why you pushed him to become a CSI so he could see if he could prove his innocence. I also know that the pictures in your hand are from the witness at the bank that got hit a few hours ago. I'd say that it looks exactly like the mugshot you're holding and that's the guy I was driving that car." Eddie turned about to leave when he turned back again to say one more thing to Joe. "And just so you know we just happened to be walking out here we didn't intend to run into a criminal." Then Eddie was gone.

"We weren't the only ones affected by the particle accelerator explosion were we," Barry asked as he and Eddie made it into STAR Labs?

"We don't know for sure," Dr. Wells said.

"You said the city was safe, that there was no residual danger. But that's not true, so what really happened that night?" Eddie demanded.

"Well... The accelerator went active. We all felt like heroes, and then... It all went wrong. The dimensional barrier ruptured, unleashing unknown energies into our world. Antimatter, dark energy, x-elements..."

"Those are all theoretical."

"And how theoretical are you? We mapped the dispersion throughout and around Central City. Though we have no way of knowing exactly what or... Who was exposed, we've been searching for other meta-humans like yourself."

"Meta-humans?"

"That's what we're calling them," Caitlin said.

"We saw one today, Eddie said getting to the main reason they had come. "He's a bank robber, and he can control the weather."

"This just keeps getting cooler."

"This is not cool. All right? A man died. Mardon must have gotten his powers the same way I did. From the storm cloud. He's still out there. We have to stop him before he hurts anyone else."

"Barry, that's a job for the police."

"Sure, because CCPD is equipped to deal with someone that can control the weather. Besides I work for the police."

"As a forensic assistant."

"Well I'm a detective," Eddie said. "You're responsible for this. For him. It's important that we stop him before anyone else can get hurt."

"What's important is the two of you. Not me. I lost everything. I lost my company. I lost my reputation. I lost my freedom. And then Barry broke his arm, and it healed in three hours. Inside your bodies could be a map to a whole new world. Genetic therapies, vaccines, medicines, treasures buried deep within your cells and we cannot risk losing everything because you want to go out and play hero! You're not heroes. You are just two young men who were struck by lightning." For the second time that day Barry's emotions were everywhere and he ran from the room.

"You listen to me," Eddie said looking Wells in the eyes. "I don't care what you think you can find in my body or Barry's. It's not your choice what we do. You may have caused this and because of your actions we now have these abilities but we aren't science experiments that you can dissect and poke at for answers. You should be thankful that Barry is willing to help you clean up the mess you created." Eddie then turned to Cisco, "I need you to find out where he went because I have a feeling he didn't just go home."

 

* * *

 

"So that's my story," Barry said now that he had explained everything. "I've spent my whole life searching for the impossible, never imagining that I would become the impossible."

"So why come to me? Something tells me you didn't just run 600 Miles to say "hi" to a friend."

"All my life, I've wanted to just do more... Be more. And now I am. And the first chance I get to help someone, I screw up. What if Wells is right? What if I'm not a hero? What if I'm just some guy who was struck by lightning?"

"I don't think that bolt of lightning struck you, Barry. I think it chose you."

"I'm just not sure I'm like you, Oliver. I don't know if I can be some... vigilante."

"You can be better. Because you can inspire people in a way that I never could... Watching over your city like a guardian angel... Making a difference... Saving people... In a flash. Take your own advice. Wear a mask," he said as he turned and jumped from the roof.

"That's cool," Eddie said from behind Barry. Barry startled and turned around. "So you know the Arrow. How did that happen?"

Barry smiled, "that's a long story."

"Well, maybe one day you'll tell me about it. Come on let's get back."

"So, I've been going over unsolved cases from the past nine months, and there's been a sharp increase in unexplained deaths and missing people," Eddie said. "Your meta-humans have been busy. Now, I'm not blaming you. I know you didn't mean for any of this to happen and it's not like you knew people would develop powers. I know you all lost something. But we need your help to catch Mardon and anyone else out there like him. We can't do it without you."

"If we're gonna do this, I have something that might help. Something I've been playing with." Cisco lead them to a couple of manikins. "I designed them to replace the turnouts firefighters traditionally wear. I thought if S.T.A.R. Labs could do something nice for the community, maybe people wouldn't be so angry at Dr. Wells anymore."

"How are those going to help us?"

"They are made of a reinforced tri-polymer. It's heat and abrasive resistant, so they should withstand your moving at high-velocity speeds. And the aerodynamic design should help you maintain control. Plus, it has built-in sensors so we can track your vitals and stay in contact with you from here."

"Thanks. Now how do we find Mardon?"

"I retasked S.T.A.R. Labs satellite to track meteorological abnormalities over Central City. We just got a ping. Atmospheric pressure dropped 20 millibars in a matter of seconds. I've tracked it to a farm just west of the city."

 

* * *

"I'm not saying Mardon is alive," Joe said to Chyre as they pulled up to the barn. "But if he was, this is the last place he and his brother hid out. Let's go." They got out of the car and walked carefully into the barn. "Mardon? On your feet. Hands on your head."

"You got me," Clyde said with a laugh. "You know, the night of the storm, after S.T.A.R. Labs blew, after our plane went down, and I woke up on the ground alive, when I saw what I can do, I understood. I am God."

"Shut the hell up and turn around," Joe said both his and his partners guns trained on Clyde.

"Do you think that your guns can stop God?" Clyde asked as he turned around with his hand in the air.

"Why in the hell would God need to rob banks?" Joe demanded.

"You're right," Clyde said as wind gathered around his hands. "I've been thinking too small." He thrust his hands in Joe's direction throwing him and Chyre across the barn. He raised his hands again and a tornado began to for around him. Joe grabbed Chyre and helped him from the barn only for them to be thrown into the side of their care. Chyre was knock unconscious and Joe sat watching the tornado move toward the city. He saw a piece of the roof flying toward him and he braced for the impact when a blur flew past him and knock the object of course. He stared in shock as a man came out from behind it. He was joined not a moment later by someone else.

"Barry! Eddie! This thing's getting closer. Wind speeds are 200 Miles-per-hour and increasing. Hey, can you both hear me?" Cisco called.

"Yeah," Barry said.

"Loud and clear," Eddie agreed.

"If it keeps up, this could become an F-5 tornado."

"It's headed towards the city. How do we stop it?" Eddie asked but no answer came.

"What if we unravel it?" Barry suggested.

"How the hell are you going to do that?" Caitlin asked.

"We can run around it in the opposite direction, cut off its legs."

"Would that even work," Eddie asked?

"It should but you'd have to clock 700 Miles-per-hour to do that," Cisco said.

"Your bodies may not be able to handle those speeds. You could die."

"We have to try," Barry said looking at Eddie who nodded in agreement. They took off and began circling around the tornado in the opposite direction that it was spinning. Off to the side Joe sat watching as the two raced off.

"The suits are holding up," Cisco cheered.

"But they aren't," Caitlin pointed out.

"They can do it. I know they can do it."

Barry and Eddie continued to run only to be struck by a bolt of lightning that caused them to be thrown from the tornado. "It's too strong!" Barry said into the headset.

"You can do this, Barry," Dr. Wells said as he rolled up to the mic. "Eddie was right. I am responsible for all of this. So many people have been hurt because of me, and when I looked at you, all I saw was another potential victim of my hubris. And yes, I created this madness, but you two, you can stop it. You can do this. Now run, Barry, run!" The two of them raced back into the tornado giving it their all. It wasn't long before the tornado imploded on itself separating the two heroes.

"Barry? Eddie?" Caitlin called into the mic but neither answered. They began to worry.

"Hey," Clyde called out as he walked over to where Barry lay I on the ground gun pointed at him. "I didn't think there was anyone else like me."

"I'm not like you. You're a murderer." Before Clyde could pull the trigger him Eddie ran over and shoved him away.

"You ok?"

"Yeah thanks."

"It's no problem. Let's get the mask back on don't want anyone to see." As Eddie helped Barry to his feet they heard gun shots and turned their attention to where Clyde had been preparing to attack them again. They looked to see Joe standing by his car gun pointed at Clyde. Before Joe could even speak the two of them were gone.

 

* * *

Barry and Eddie found themselves outside of STAR Labs a few hours later about to head home. "So you remember the day we got struck you said you had come to talk to me. Do you remember what it was you were going to ask?"

"Well to be honest I was going to ask you out for coffee. I know we haven't know each other long and then there was the whole coma thing but…," Eddie paused. "Barry Allen I was wondering if you would like to go out sometime when we don't have to work."

Barry smiled "Sure Eddie. I would love too."

 

* * *

"Hey, slugger.

"You've been calling me that since I was 11. Funny thing is, I finally got into a fight today."

"You just got out of a coma. I'm not sure you should be picking fights. Hey... Did you win?"

"Yeah, I did but I had some help this time. You didn't kill mom. You know I know that, right?"

"You believing me is all I need."

"You're not gonna be in here much longer. Whoever killed mom... Whatever killed her...? I think I finally have a way to find them. To stop them."

"Barry, we've talked about this. It's time to let it go. You have got to stop worrying about me, and live your life."

"For the first time, I feel like I finally can. The truth is, ever since the night mom died, I've been stuck in one place, missed out on a lot of things. But I'm different now. I've made some new friends. They're helping me find my way. Helping me to finally move forward. I even have a date this weekend. You remember when you wanted me to change my name so I wouldn't have to deal with people knowing you're my dad? I'm glad they know. I'm so proud to be your son."

"I love you, son."

"I love you too, dad."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://phil-cho.deviantart.com/art/Impulse-Earth-27-commission-678873900  
> This is what I imagine Eddie's suit looking like. At least similar design but with a full hood and no goggles.


	3. Fastest Men Alive

This is the part where I'm supposed to do the whole intro thingy. Barry Allen, one of the fastest men alive... But you know all that already. All right, let's get to the good stuff. There’s a fire on Western and 3rd in downtown Central City. I’m on my way to it seen as little more than a blur to the people I pass. I'm going 352 miles an hour. And it's a slow day.  
“Barry? Barry!” Cisco shouted into the earpiece.  
“What? Did I miss it?”  
“You overshot by about six blocks.”  
“My bad,” Barry said before turning around and heading in the other direction.  
“You there yet,” Cisco asked as he relax in his chair in the safety of STAR labs as he monitored Barry.  
“What are you doing,” Caitlin asked as she walked into the cortex?  
“Nothing,” Cisco denied as he turned off the computer screen just as Eddie walked in.  
“Hey have either of you seen Barry? I can’t find him.”  
“Nope haven’t seen him,” Cisco quickly denied looking anywhere but at Eddie.  
“Were you talking to Barry when I came in,” Caitlin asked?  
“Who?” Cisco asked feigning confusion.  
“Barry Allen? Struck by lightning? Was in a coma for nine months? Woke up being able to run faster than the speed of sound? Ring a bell?” Caitlin asked knowing Cisco was hiding something.  
“Oh him. No I haven’t seen or talked to him,” Cisco said but before he could say more Barry’s voice called out over the speaker.  
“Cisco, there's fire everywhere! Cisco, are you still there?” As Barry waited for a reply he saw a little girl step into the hallway calling for her mom. He quickly ran forward and grabbed her and took her outside with the rest of the tenants of the building before going back in and searching for more people. He pulled a few move people out before the building was clear and he stop running a couple of blocks away. “Everybody's out. What else you got for me, Cisco?”  
“Barry, its Caitlin. “  
“Hey, Caitlin.” Barry said cringing it wasn’t good that they had been caught doing this. “How's your day?  
“Get back to S.T.A.R. Labs. Now,” she demanded.  
“On my way. Oh,” Barry breathed out as the world began to tilt. He shook it off and ran back to S.T.A.R. labs.

* * *

“Have you both lost your minds? Who do you think you are?”  
“Well, I'm the eyes and ears, and he's the feet,” Cisco explained.  
“This isn't funny. You could have gotten yourself killed. You can't be running around the city like some supersonic fireman.”  
“Why not? This is what we talked about, Eddie and I using our speed to do good.”  
“Hey don’t try to drag me into this. I didn’t even get invited to this which means you knew you shouldn’t have been doing it without talking to us first.”  
“Besides,” Caitlin cut in, “we talked about you helping us contain other people who might have been affected by the particle accelerator explosion. Meta-humans. And aside from Clyde Mardon, we haven't found any.”  
“People in this city still need help,” Barry said. “And I can help them.”  
“We can help them,” Cisco added.  
“Will you please say something?” Catlin said looking to where Dr. Wells was sitting in the doorway.  
“I think what Caitlin is saying, in her own spectacularly angry way, is that we are just beginning to understand what your body is capable of,” Dr. Wells said as he rolled into the room. “Not to sound like a broken record, Mr. Allen... I do caution restraint.”  
“Dr. Wells... I doubt restraint is how you got to be the man you are today.”  
“In a wheelchair and a pariah. Lack of restraint is what made me these things. Know your limits.”  
“Don't expect me to patch you up every time you break something Caitlin said before following Dr. Wells as he moved away from Barry.  
“Wow,” Barry said as he felt a shiver go up his spine “she really knows how to give you the cold shoulder.”  
“Hey, uh... Anything happen out there today? The sensors in the suit were kicking back some weird telemetry, like your vitals spiked for a few seconds,” Cisco asked sounding a little worried.  
Barry shook his head no and said, “Never felt better.” The conversation was put on hold by the sound of Barry’s phone ringing. Cisco pulled the phone from his pocket and handed it over. “Joe, what can I do for you?”  
“Well Barry, I got a fresh crime scene... A dead body... Detectives interviewing witnesses... miles of that yellow tape stretched over everything. I'm only missing one thing. Can you guess what that is? And have you seen Thawne? He said he was going to try and make sure you weren’t late again.”  
“Yeah I’m with him now. We will be right there. Our day jobs beckon,” Barry said as he hung up the phone.  
“That’s why I came looking for you,” Eddie said before he and Barry ran from the room.  
“When do you think they'll realize he didn't take his clothes?” Dr. Wells asked when he realized Barry left in his suit.

* * *

As soon as they arrived at the crime scene Barry went to walk over to the crime scene when Eddie grabbed him by the shoulder. Barry turned to him with a questioning look when Eddie gestured to his clothes causing Barry to look down and realize he was still in his suit. Barry looked around and spotted a small clothing store before running into it leaving Eddie to head over to the crime scene while Barry found clothes.  
“Perp made off with a bunch of handguns, at least six Glock 19s fitted with extra ammunition magazines. Somebody's looking to do a whole lot of bad,” Joe explained to the Captain.  
“Hey, sorry I'm late,” Barry said as he walked over to them.  
“Doing a little fall shopping, Mr. Allen?” Captain Singh asked drawing Barry’s attention to the price tag still on his coat.  
“Oh. I was going so fast this morning, I didn't even notice,” Barry said as he pulled out a pair of gloves and began looking at the crime scene.  
“I downloaded the surveillance footage off the video camera,” Eddie said walking over showing the Captain the footage. “Looks like only one perp.”  
“Footage may only show one, but it was six guys,” Barry said looking at the footprints. “Look, you see how they're all crossing each other. Six sets of footprints. Six guns stolen. We should be looking for a crew. Huh... Weird. The shoes, it looks like they're all the same size. Men's tens, I'd guess. Just like you, Captain,” Barry said off handedly before realizing what he said. “Not that you're a suspect, sir.” The captain just looked at him before walking away. Eddie did the same but Barry saw the smile that he was holding back.

* * *

“Your ability to multi-task is truly remarkable,” Joe said once they had arrived back at the precinct. “The way you can embarrass me, the captain, and yourself all at the same time.”  
“Joe, I'm sorry.”  
“I'm starting to think "Joe, I'm sorry" is my actual name considering how often you say it to me.”  
“Well at least one of us knows how to say it,” Barry said tired of dealing with Joe. “I'm dealing with a lot right now. I don’t really have time to worry about if you’re embarrassed by me.”  
“Oh you think you’re dealing with a lot well you’re not the only one. Just get up to the lab and start processing the evidence from the gun store.” Barry walked away at the dismissal and Joe was left wondering why it was so hard to say he was sorry to the boy.

In the lab Barry was sitting down to run his centrifuge. He closed the lid and waited for it to start up but it didn’t. He looked it over before he opened the lid and took the vial back out. He got an idea and began to swirl it himself causing the substances inside to separate. He got up to move to the next part of his work when he felt the dizziness from earlier return. It only lasted a second and then everything was back to normal.  
“This is all your fault,” Iris said as she walked into the lab. “I could have taken European folklore to cover my sociology requirement, but no. You said, "Take journalism, Iris. Reporters have all of the fun." Guess what, Barry? Reporters have none of the fun. Journalism is boring. I'm bored. I blame you.” They were silent for a moment while Barry tried to think of something to say. “What? Why are you staring at me like that?”  
“You look really nice,” is all Barry could manage.  
“Thanks. Why don't you look nice? This afternoon? Suit and tie? The university is giving Simon Stagg some big award. And you agreed…”  
“To explain the science stuff for your article. It's all coming back to me now,” Barry said feeling bad for having forgotten.  
“How fast can you get home and change?”  
“Uh, pretty fast.”  
“Hey, Allen,” Eddie said as he walked into the lab. “Joe asked me to see where you're at on the evidence from the gun store shooting. Hey, Iris.”  
“Eddie,” Iris said back in greeting. Everyone just stood there awkwardly for a few seconds not sure what to do or say. “Please, guys, just kiss or something. Do whatever, just stop this she said gesturing between them. I already know, remember?”  
“Right,” Eddie said smiling as he walked over and gave Barry a quick peck on the lips. “Thanks for being so cool about this, Iris. I know it's not easy keeping a big secret.”  
“It’s no trouble besides I just want Barry to be happy.”

* * *

“I find it quite remarkable, having once been a timid freshman at Central City University, to be standing before you now, the regent’s choice for man of the year. While I very much appreciate the award, the real honor for me is knowing that my work in organ transference helps give people a second chance at life. Thank you all very much for coming.”  
“Okay. All right, first things first...” Barry said once Simon was done giving his speech. “Simon Stagg's work in cellular cloning has led to huge advancements in the future of organ replacement...”  
“Are journalists allowed to drink on the job?” Iris asked as she grabbed to glasses of champagne from a passing waitress.  
“Okay. If you are bored already, just wait till we get to the science behind cellular regeneration.”  
“I have missed this, Barry. I feel like we haven't spent any quality time together since you woke up from the coma.”  
“Yeah, I've had a crazy few weeks, I know.”  
“I thought maybe you'd been avoiding me because of Eddie. I know you think I wouldn’t approve, and I just—”  
“No. That is not it. At all.”  
“Oh! Oh! Mr. Stagg, I was wondering if I could get a quote from you for my article.”  
“Not now, miss.”  
“I'll just make something up. So... What were you gonna tell me? You looked like you were about to say something.” Before Barry can even from the words the sound of gunshots fills the air and people start to scream.  
“Quiet down! All of you! Quiet! How considerate! You're all wearing your finest jewelry! Almost like you knew we were coming to rob you! Now everybody line up!” The thieves stood holding their bags open as everyone deposited their jewelry.  
“Freeze a security guard said as he aimed his gun at them. D-d-drop your weapons!” The men all raised their guns and shot at the security guard. Barry raced over and grabbed the man talking him into the stairwell. Barry then followed after the thieves making it outside in time to see them driving away. He wanted to go after them but then the world went sideways and everything went black. He woke up later to someone calling his name.  
“Barry. Barry. Barry! I turned around and you were gone. What happened? Are you okay?”  
“Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I... I went after them to try and get the plates. And I... I fainted. Barry said feeling very concerned about what had happened to him. Once they made it back inside they walked over to where Joe and Eddie were standing.  
“Hi,” Iris said when she saw her dad.  
“Where were you,” Joe asked?  
“Dad, go easy. I found him outside. He fainted.”  
“You want me to get you a paramedic, Allen?” Eddie asked seemingly far more relaxed than he really was.  
“No, I'm fine. Thanks, Eddie.”  
“I thought I was dead,” They overheard the guard say. “I saw the gun go off, and then-- boom. Suddenly I'm outside. I have no idea how I got there.”  
“Can I talk to you for a second,” Eddie asked looking at Barry?  
“Yeah.”  
“You chased those gunmen, didn't you?”  
“Yeah, they must be the same guys that knocked over the gun shop earlier today.”  
“And what were you going to do when you caught them? Huh? Ask them nicely to pull over? We're not bulletproof.”  
“I know, but—”  
“No more heroics. Chasing bad guys is not your job. It's mine. You're not a cop. Promise me you won’t go after them again I don’t want you to get hurt.”  
“I promise,” Barry said.  
“Now tell me about you fainting. What happened? You know Caitlin is going to kill you right?

* * *

“You lied to us. How could you not tell us you're experiencing dizzy spells? We're your doctors. Have you been keeping things from us too?” Caitlin asked Eddie.  
“No I haven’t experienced anything like that but I also haven’t been using my abilities as much as Barry.”  
“God knows what's going on inside your body. Your cells are in a constant state of flux. You could be experiencing cardiopulmonary failure or a transient ischemic attack.”  
“Mini stroke,” Dr. Wells said seeing the confusion on Barry’s face. “Probably not.”  
“You of all people should know that in science, we share. We do not keep secrets,” Caitlin stormed out the room walking past Eddie and he felt a shiver rundown his spine.  
“Wow, I haven't seen anyone make her that angry since Ronnie,” Cisco said.  
“Ronnie was Caitlin's fiancé,” Eddie asked? “The one that died the night of the accelerator explosion?”  
“Yeah. He is... missed,” Dr. Wells said. “Now, lets figure out why this is happening to you.”  
“We're all set. A little padding,” Cisco said when he saw Barry starring at all of the boxes he had piled behind the treadmill. “Just in case.”  
“You're sure about this, Cisco?”  
“Most home treadmills have a maximum speed of about 12 miles per hour. This one has been Cisco'ed. Trust me. It can handle your speed.”  
“Alright, Barry will go first and then if we need to we can check Eddie if we need to compare anything.” Barry got on the treadmill and began to run. “Heart rate, blood pressure, nerve conduction all normal.”  
“For you guys anyway.”  
“Brainwave function within standard limits.”  
“I told you the treadmill could take it.”  
“Caitlin. Look at the glucose levels.”  
“Oh, my God. Of course. It was so obvious.”  
“Glucose levels. Barry! We think we know why you keep—” Barry was unconscious before he could finish the sentence — “passing out.”  
“I passed out again?” Barry asked when he regained consciousness and found that he was on one of the beds in the cortex.  
“Total metabolic failure brought on by acute hypoglycemia,” Caitlin explained.  
“I'm not eating enough. So an I.V. bag and I'm good to go?”  
“Try 40,” Eddie said gesturing to the empty I.V. bags. “Guess you were thirsty.”  
“We're gonna need to fashion you a new diet based on your metabolic changes.”  
“I've done a few calculations. You need to consume an amount equal to roughly 850 tacos,” Cisco said excitedly. “Unless we're talking cheese and guac, which is like a whole other set of equations.”  
“Barry can I talk to you for a minute,” Eddie says excusing himself and Barry from the room. “Listen I don’t think that you should keep running after bad guys. You already have a job in law enforcement, Barry. One that you are amazing at.”  
“But what about all of the Meta-humans out there? You saw the reports same as I did, they are causing so much trouble.”  
“I know and I’m not saying we stop trying to find and stop them. We saw a guy that could control the weather there is no way the police could have handled something like that. But the normal criminals we should leave that to our day jobs. Finding other Meta-humans and making sure that there are no other side effects to using our powers is probably what we should focus on. I’m not trying to tell you that we should never help people I’m just saying maybe don’t have that be your priority just yet.”  
Barry wanted to argue and say that Eddie was wrong but after taking in everything that he was saying he knew that he was right. He just found out that his speed effects how much he should be eating. And they have no clue what else it could be messing with inside his body. “Your right,” Barry said. “I was just caught up in being able to help people that I wasn’t putting any thought into what was happening to me I was just going to ignore the side effects but I can’t help people if I pass out. I’m sorry I didn’t say anything about the dizziness I didn’t even think about the fact that it could have been affecting you too. I just… I couldn’t help my dad but now I can help so many people.”  
“I know and we will but we have to take care of ourselves too,” Eddie said pulling Barry into a hug. “Now let’s go apologize to Caitlin before we go. I know it doesn’t seem like it but she’s probably just really worried about what could happen. She’s already lost someone she cares about I’m sure she doesn’t want to lose anyone else.

* * *

Barry looked up when he heard someone enter his lab only to see Joe walk over to him. “Come to argue with me again?”  
“Simon Stagg's head of security was murdered last night. The coroner took some skin samples. Hopefully they belong to the killer. See if you can find a match.”  
“Can't be a coincidence that Stagg's benefit was attacked last night.”  
“I'm going to interview Stagg now.”  
“I'll come with you.”  
“Your job is in here. Stay in here and do it,” Joe said sternly before turning and leaving.  
“Hey, Dad,” Iris greeted as she passed her dad in the doorway.  
“Hey, baby. Gotta go.”  
“Is my dad still mad at you?”  
“Unfortunately,” Barry sighed as he began processing the evidence Joe left. When she didn’t say anything he looked in her direction. “Why are you mad at me?”  
“You were supposed to meet me at jitters to give me some scientific background for my article.”  
“And I didn't show up.”  
“And now I have to come up with a new article topic in 24 hours or I fail the assignment.”  
“Iris—” Barry began.  
“Don't say that you're sorry. Okay, I know that you are. What I don't know is what is going on with you. We grew up one bedroom down from each other. Do you honestly think that I don't know when you're happy? Or sad or depressed or lost? I'm gonna ask you one last time, Barry Allen, and you better be honest with me. What the—”  
“You want to know what's happening,” Barry said now moving at super speed. “Eddie and I are fast now. God, I just want to tell you. But I can’t because that could put you in danger. And there are others out there with powers and who knows what they are planning to do with them and I don’t know what to do.”  
“—Hell is going on with you?” Seemingly before he could respond his computer beeped. “We are not done talking about this.”  
“That's impossible. There was a murder last night. These skin cells belong to the murderer, but these cells are naive. Stem cells that they can replicate and become any cell the body needs. They only come from babies.”  
“This means your killer is what, a newborn?”

* * *

“You honestly think that someone wants to kill me,” Simon asked as he walked through the warehouse with the two detectives?  
“Well, we're not sure, Mr. Stagg, but... An event you were being honored at was robbed at gunpoint. And your head of security was found murdered this morning,” Joe said.  
“I am a scientist and a philanthropist. We're not often the targets of assassins.”  
“Well...,” Eddie said cutting in, “What about lawsuits? You got about 20 of those pending against you.”  
“It is a sad fact of life, Detective, that when you earn a lot of money, people who haven't think they can take yours.”  
“People like this guy, for example?” Eddie said pulling out a picture. “Danton Black?”  
“Danton Black.” Stagg repeated taking the picture into his hands.  
“You fired him. Now he's suing you.”  
“Unfortunately, our working relationship wasn't successful, but I can assure you both of one thing. Danton Black... Is not a killer. He's a clinical researcher, not a criminal mastermind. Now, if I can help you in any way, please let me know. I want these people caught as much as you.”  
“Then here we are!” One of the three masked me shouted as they opened fire. The two detectives got Simon behind cover.  
“Get him out of here. I'll cover you,” Eddie said to Joe. “Ready? Go.” Joe and Simon ran for the exit as Eddie fired shots toward the men attacking him. He managed to hit one and the man fell. Eddie watched between the barrels as one of the removed his mask revealing himself to be Danton Black. Then to his shock he watched as he made a clone of himself. Before the clones knew what happened Barry appeared next to Eddie holding all of their guns.  
“Go!” He ordered Eddie  
“No, I’m staying to help.”  
“No they can see your face they could tell someone.”  
“Barry I just saw him make a clone of himself so be careful.”  
“I got this don’t worry,” Barry said. Eddie hesitated but left to go find Joe.  
“Whoever you are, give yourself up.”  
“Sorry. We are not going anywhere. Until Simon Stagg is dead.” Barry quickly took out two of them and went for the third. The man in front of him then split into three people. Barry began fighting them but when he punch one two more copies appeared. Unseen by Barry the other two copies got up and grabbed him from behind. With so many of them ganging up on him he was no match as they punched and kicked him. Barry sat beaten against some containers while some of the clones grabbed their guns. Before they could shot him Barry ran from the building.

“Sorry,” Caitlin said as she tried to clean one of Barry’s wounds. “The abrasions are already rapidly healing.”  
“Yeah, I got my ass handed to me.”  
“You got blood on my suit,” Cisco said.  
“I think some of it belongs to him. Another not-so-friendly meta-human.”  
“Danton Black,” Dr. Wells said as he pulled up a picture of the meta-human. “He's a bio-geneticist specialized in therapeutic cloning. Growing new organs to replace failing ones.”  
“Apparently Stagg stole his research and then fired him,” Caitlin explained.  
“I saw Black create duplicates from his own body.”  
“That's pretty ironic. The guy specialized in cloning and now he can make xeroxes of himself,” Cisco said.  
“If he was experimenting on himself when he was exposed to the dark matter wave released by the particle accelerator explosion—”  
“Meet Captain Clone,” Cisco said happily until he noticed the disapproving faces of his friends. “Don't worry. I'll come up with something cooler.”  
“Where are you going?” Caitlin asked when Barry started to leave.  
“I'm in way over my head. Yeah, I'm fast, but I am no warrior. Man, I could barely fight one meta-human, let alone six.”  
“Barry. I understand. Today was a setback,” Dr. Wells said. “But any grand enterprise has them. And we can never learn to fly without crashing a few times.”  
“This wasn't a grand enterprise, Dr. Wells. This was a mistake,” Barry said before leaving.

* * *

Barry arrived at Jitters in time to see Eddie and Iris watching the news. “Detective, was the gunman apprehended?”  
“The shooter's whereabouts are unknown at this time. We consider him armed and extremely dangerous. Thank you. No more questions,” Eddie said to the reporter. He and Iris noticed Barry and turned the TV off.  
“Nice work, Eddie.”  
“Nah. Right place, right time.”  
“No, you were a hero today.”  
“Well I’m going to see if they need any more help in the back,” Iris said before she left them alone.  
“Barry I’m so sorry that I left you alone in there. I should have stayed or come back in once I knew that Joe and Stagg were ok.”  
“No, it’s fine, I’m the one that told you to go.”  
“At least your all healed up now,” Eddie said looking Barry over.  
“Yeah I’m okay.”  
“Good,” Eddie said as he kissed Barry. “Well CCPD still has a killer on the loose. I should get back to the precinct.” Barry nodded and said his goodbye as he watched Eddie walk out the door.  
“So, did you come here for caffeine, or are you finally gonna tell me what's going on with you?” Iris asked as she came to stand by Barry.  
“I came to say I'm sorry. And you're right. I have been distant.”  
“Correct.”  
“Kind of a jerk.”  
“You should apologize more often. You are really sensational at it. So... What were you going to tell me the other day?”  
“I thought I had to do something. Something I thought was important, but it turns out that I'm not very good at it. But what I am good at is being your friend. So if you need help coming up with a new topic for your article—”  
“I found one. Something that actually interests me. I know this is gonna sound crazy... It's been all over the Internet this week. At a building fire... At a bank heist... Even the other night when those robbers shot at the security guard, he said he was whooshed outside. Something out there is saving people.”  
“I thought you were taking journalism. Not science fiction writing,” Barry said not sure what else to say. Iris was writing about him. How was he supposed to react to that?  
“Ever since I have known you, you have believed in the impossible. What if you were right? What if you were right about the night that your mom died?” Iris asked but then Barry’s phone rang.  
Look, I told you I'm through.  
I know, but you need to get to S.T.A.R. Labs right now,” Caitlin said. Barry left and ran to STAR Labs as fast as he could. He arrived to see Danton Black standing in the middle of the cortex.  
“Barry, its okay.”  
“It is not okay. Black is here, and he's just...standing there. That's not him, is it?”  
“It's one of his replicates,” Dr. Wells said.  
“How did you get it?”  
“I grew him,” Caitlin explained. “I isolated a sample of Black's blood from your suit to see if I could trigger the in vitro cultivation process and learn how Black multiplies. So I exposed the target cells to a protein gel, and they began replicating... Into that.”  
“Why isn't he... It doing anything?”  
“We did a brain scan,” Dr. Wells explained. “Involuntary motor functions are active, little else. We think it's acting as a receiver. The clones are an empty shell without Black. Shut down the real Black, and you might shut them all down.”  
“But how do we know which one's the real Danton Black?”  
“That occurred to me given your own passing out. Black has limits, just like you. Controlling all of those clones must require a tremendous amount of physical strength. So, look for the one showing signs of weakness or fatigue. He's the prime,” Caitlin said.  
“Just a theory... But one you might want to put to the test, Mr. Allen.”  
“Plus, I whipped up these high- calorie protein bars for you and Eddie to keep your metabolism up.” As Cisco was handing over the bar to Barry the clone suddenly began to move causing Caitlin to scream at its sudden movement. Gunshots rang out and the clone fell to the ground. Eddie slowly lowered his gun looking around the room.  
“Any more of them,” Eddie asked?  
“Nope.”  
“Why did it start moving?”  
“The prime. My guess is, the prime is on the move. This one heard the summons to battle.”  
“And I know where he was summoned to,” Eddie said. “Stagg Industries.”  
“You should call it in.”  
“Barry, the police can't fight this. What Black's become, like Mardon... Is way beyond them. The only people that could handle this is us. We gotta do this. I’ll be right by your side like I should have been the last time. Now let’s go stop him.”

“Just get me those figures by morning, okay?” Simon said as he hung up his phone. Down the hall he could hear shouting and gunshots. When he rounded a corner he came face to face with his former employee. “Hello, Danton.”  
“Goodbye, Simon,” Danton said raising his gun to shoot. Suddenly Simon was back in his office unharmed staring at a man in red and white suit.  
“Stay here,” Eddie told the man before running back down to Barry who was fighting Black.  
“I know Stagg stole your research, but that doesn't give you the right to murder,” Barry said as he and Danton were fighting.  
“You think this is about my job. This is about Elizabeth. She was my wife. She had a degenerative coronary disease. She'd been on the transplant list for years, but... Time was running out. So if I couldn't get her a new heart...”  
“You were gonna grow her one,” Eddie said filling in the pieces.  
“I was so close. Until Stagg stole my research. So he could reap the glory. And I got to bury my best friend. Now... I'm alone,” Danton said watching as Barry took down the last clone. He then released an army of clones from his body one after another. They all ganged up on Barry and Eddie causing them to have to flee for a moment to catch their breath.  
“Remember, find the prime,” Caitlin said over the headsets.  
“There's too many of them to fight,” Barry said.  
“Barry, Eddie, you need to isolate the prime,” Dr. Wells urged.  
“I can't. It's impossible.”  
“Nothing's impossible Barry,” Eddie said from beside him. “I mean look at us, we are using our super speed to fight a guy that can clone himself. We can do this.” Barry looked at Eddie and the smile that had spread across his face. “Ready,” he asked?  
“Yeah,” Barry said feeling a surge of confidence. They both took off into the army of clones that had come after them looking for the real Danton Black. Barry finally found him standing by the escalator. He grabbed him and slammed him into a column a few floors away.  
“Barry. Barry, are you all right,” Eddie asked over the headset?  
“I'm fine. I'm fine. It's done.” Barry looked over the railing at all of the clones laying motionless on the floor Eddie standing in the middle of it. Barry had to dodge out of the way when Black stood up and charged at him before throwing himself out the window. Barry managed to grab his hand. “Hang on!” He shouted to the man but he watched in horror as a hand emerged from his arm. “No! Don't.” But it was to late the hand pulled Black from Barry’s grip and he fell to his death.

“I tried to save him,” Barry said as they all watched the news.  
“Doesn't sound like he wanted to be saved,” Dr. Wells said. “Some people, when they break... They can't be put together again.”  
“Well, at least Multiplex won't be able to hurt anyone else. Told you I'd come up with a cool name.”  
“Yeah, we may be the ones in the suits doing all the running... But when we’re out there helping people, making a difference... You're all out there with us,” Barry said.  
“I finally realized something,” Eddie said before he and Barry left. “We were all struck by that lightning.”

* * *

“Hungry?” Eddie asked as he enter the lab with a small stack of pizza boxes and set them on the table in front of Barry. “Pepperoni, olives... And jalapeño. Just like you like it.”  
“Thank you,” Barry said as he opened a box.  
“You were wrong.”  
“I have been wrong a lot this week. You're gonna have to be more specific.”  
“You said that one of things driving you to run around out there was that you couldn't help your dad. You couldn’t help when you were a kid but maybe we can now. From what you’ve told me it sounds like whatever happened to your mother wasn’t in anyway normal. It sounds like it could have been someone like us, someone with speed like ours. We're gonna figure out who or what killed your mother that night. And then we're gonna get your father out of prison. Together,” Eddie said as they both began to eat. “And I was wrong too.”  
“About what,” Barry asked?  
“I told you we should leave the normal criminals to our day job and look how that turned out. The guy was a Meta-human. So maybe we should help the police out a little more. You never know when we might run into another Meta. Besides it will be good practice with our speed.”

* * *

“Wells...,” Simon said when he noticed the man enter his office. “Who the hell let you in here?”  
“You been having a party out there?”  
“I'm sure you saw on TV. A former employee of mine tried to kill me.”  
“Former employee with the ability to replicate... Faced off against two men who could move at super speed.”  
“You've seen them too, haven't you?”  
“Indeed, I have.”  
“Extraordinary. The power they possess, it's like the-- it's like the Gods of old. It's like Mercury on earth. Can you imagine if you could control their power? If you could--if you could harness it? You could change what it means to be human. The men in the red masks are the key, and I'm gonna get them.”  
“The men in the red mask. One is called the Flash. Or at least... He will be one day. The other,” Dr. Wells said standing up from his wheel chair, “is an unexpected side affect. But it could mean great things for me.”  
“What the hell?” Dr. Wells’ quickly stabbed the man in front of him with a knife.  
“Forgive me, Simon. I worry that you will think this is personal, and it's not. It's just that the men in the red masks... The fastest men alive... they must be kept... safe.”

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know if you have any name ideas for Eddie. Im thinking about making him Impulse but im not sure yet.


End file.
